York County Edition
July 2013
Vol. 14 No. 7
Life’s Second Draft Widowed Journalist Encourages Healing with Writing Circle By Chelsea Peifer Sometimes you create a life you’ve dreamed of and worked for, and something comes along that changes everything. In the aftermath, a person can choose to give up and stay put or to keep going forward, to find new meaning in a life with different circumstances. As a writer and journalist, Susan Weidener had not only heard the stories of people from all walks of life, but she had also articulated and retold their stories so others could hear and understand. Writing had always been a way for Weidener to connect with others and to nurture her own soul. So when Weidener was 44 and lost her husband—and love of her life—to a seven-year battle with cancer, she turned to writing as she chose to move forward. Weidener and her husband, John Cavalieri, had two sons, who were ages 7 and 11 at the time John passed away. “There were all of these messages then—and still are—that a single woman can’t raise boys alone,” said Weidener. “It’s not true. All a child needs is one charismatic adult in his or her life.” Weidener’s perspective on single parenting might sound like effortless perseverance, but she applies her hard work ethic to whatever she approaches, embracing the reality that one person can make a difference in a person’s life. please see DRAFT page 14 Susan Weidener, creator of the Women’s Writing Circle, inside the bookshop where the group meets monthly.
Inside:
Crafting the Roads and History of New Hampshire page 8
Hospital Gowns Get a Redesign page 15